No Love In The City For Takeshi Miyakawa

Love can make you do “crazy” things. But not the type of terrorism Takeshi Miyakawa is charged with as of Saturday night. He had to have been playing with a full deck when he installed a series of illuminated bags in trees and lampposts. Instead, a judge sentenced him to 30 days in jail, and a mental evaluation. Miyakawa’s bags with “I ♥ NY” printed on them raised New Yorker’s suspicion because they looked like bombs. They saw something, so they said something, earning Miyakawa a charge of a class D felony—reckless endangerment, and criminal nuisance.

A Facebook group has been created for Miyakawa demanding justice for the artist. The guy only wished to show his appreciation for NY after relocating here from Tokyo 23 years ago. What kind of message is the city trying to send to transplants like Takeshi? They probably don’t even know. If they could, they’d probably try to pin other crazy charges like theft, or danger to the environment for not reusing and recycling the NY bags for other practical uses: lining garbage cans, or carrying take-out. Show some real love by clicking here to sign the petition for Takeshi.